I was born on a beautiful Monday morning 57 years ago, March 8, 1965, in the small anglophone West African country called Ghana, in the coastal capital city of Accra. I am therefore bilingual, speaking my African language Ga and English. I was raised as the middle child of 3 siblings by a single mother and completed all of my basic education- elementary school through medical school in Ghana.

For me, the path into the world of science (which culminated in me becoming a medical doctor) started at the age of 11 years when my mother bought me my very first Children’s Chemistry Set as a birthday gift. I was enthralled by the various experiments I could perform in my room-the worst being when I created Hydrogen Sulfide (the stuff that exudes from rotten eggs) and stank up the whole house. She was livid indeed. My fascination with science nevertheless only got more intensified.

I entered the University of Ghana in 1985 and graduated top of my undergraduate class, which led to my being awarded a full scholarship to travel to London, UK, where I completed my Bachelors in Biochemistry at the University of London/Middlesex Hospital Medical School in 1987.

I then returned to the University of Ghana Medical School where I graduated as an MD in June of 1991. Subsequently, I did internship rotations through various departments- including Internal Medicine, Orthopedics, Pediatrics, General Surgery and Urology at the Korlebu Teaching Hospital in Accra, Ghana. My wife, my first daughter (aged 6 months at the time) and I moved across the ocean to the United States in 1993 to further our medical education and careers. While studying for the USMLE (United States Medical Licensing Exams) in 1993-1994, I volunteered at the research lab for Physiology and Experimental Medicine at the George Washington University Hospital in Washington DC, where we conducted lab-based research involving use of various “benchwork techniques”.

I was subsequently admitted into the 4-year Internship & Residency program in the combined Internal Medicine & Pediatrics at the Beth Israel/ Mount Sinai Hospital system in Newark, New Jersey in 1994. In the final year of the training program, I was selected to be the Chief Resident, and therefore engaged in teaching and assisting students, new interns and junior residents. I took great pleasure in grooming these young and fledgling students and teaching them to become excellent doctors.

Upon graduation, we moved to Las Vegas in July 1998, straight out of the residency program. By this time, we had a 4-member family (with the addition of my second daughter who was born while I was doing my Residency). I have since worked in outpatient clinics, Urgent Cares, hospitals & Mental Health centers in Las Vegas and currently own and operate a private medical practice, Ascension Medical Center. My most compelling driving passion is in promoting/advocating for “Wellness and Preventative Healthcare” for all my patients-hence my favorite slogan: “The Best Wealth is Health”.

I love to teach, and am gifted at breaking down any subject matter down into bite-sized pieces from A through Z for the easy comprehension of novices as well as experienced folk. Over the years, I have conducted preceptorships/teaching sessions for premed students, interns, nurse practitioners and physician assistants. I have also engaged in teaching diverse subjects including martial arts (I held a black belt in Shotokan Karate all through high school and college), golf and Stocks & Options investing/trading.

Being in the medical field can be stressful at times, and it is therefore crucial for me that I maintain a “personal selfcare program”. Therefore, I engage in a few activities on a consistent basis.

These include playing (and teaching) golf, daily workouts at my favorite EOS gym, yoga and meditation as well as going for massages and stretching sessions on a regular basis. My other hobbies include SCUBA diving and trading/teaching Stock & Options trading. I also love the outdoors and all-things-nature. A visit to the beach is by far my most enchanting “Zen space” for recharging my personal batteries. I also endeavor to keep constant personal growth by learning at least one new thing each year.

I strongly believe in the wise saying “Success unshared IS Failure”. Hence, I take great pride in helping my patients as well as other persons who may find themselves needing assistance that I am capable of providing. If there is one thing I can advise to others, it is this: No matter how hard you fall, dust yourself off and pick yourself right up again, as if nobody's watching.